Kinship care and "child-only" welfare grants: Low participation despite potential benefits

Several U.S. social policies identify kinship care as the preferred out-of-home placement. However, financial assistance to defray the cost of kinship caregiving is limited. One option is the childonly welfare grant. This study investigates kinship households' eligibility for, utilization of, and educational benefits associated with these grants. Most kinship households are eligible for these grants, which in 2003 provided a median monthly benefit of $227. However, analysis of National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health data indicates that few eligible kinship households receive the grants. Regression analysis indicates that an increase in this amount of monthly household income during adolescence is associated with a 7% greater likelihood of kinship youth graduating from high school.